Bipartisan desire worn on lawmakers' lapels

The green ribbons memorializing those killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School were the lapel decoration getting the most attention at Tuesday's State of the Union address, but 20 House members also sported an orange pin with the bipartisan message, "Committed to Fix Not Fight."

The pins are another sign of the fledgling effort of a group called No Labels, established two years ago to counter the gridlock-inducing partisanship and encourage those on either side of the aisle to work together.

"Reform – real, lasting reform – can only be accomplished in a bipartisan way," said freshman Rep. Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach, citing his experience on the state Legislature's Bipartisan Caucus. "No Labels allows members of both parties to come together as equals and participate in ongoing dialogue with each without getting tangled up in ideology."

Lowenthal, whose district reaches as far south as Westminster, is the only Orange County member of Congress aligned with the group so far. Of those sporting pins Tuesday, 23 were Democrats and 17 were Republicans.

(Lowenthal, shown in the photo with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and gun-control activist Peggy McCrum prior to Tuesday's State of the Union address, sports the No Labels pin under his House of Representatives pin.)

The group's blueprint includes a call for paychecks to lawmakers to halt if a budget is not passed on time. So No Labels celebrated when a diluted version of that proposal was included in the No Budget No Pay Act of 2013, signed into law by President Barack Obama on Feb. 4.

The most important part of the bill suspends the government's borrowing limit until May 18. It also docks the pay of members of whichever chamber doesn't pass a the 2014 budget on time - but even if the budget is never passed, members would receive their withheld pay at the end of the congressional session.

The Senate has not passed a budget since 2009.

Among numerous other initiatives called for by No Labels is the requirement that presidential appointments be confirmed or rejected within 30 days of being nominated and an end to using filibusters to block motions to proceed.

To see the all 12 changes proposed for Congress and 11 for the president, visit nolabels.org.

"The most powerful interest groups in our nation’s capital work to push our leaders and our political parties apart," the site reads. "No Labels is working to bring them together to forge solutions to our nation’s problems."

No Labels endorsed Lowenthal's Republican opponent, Gary DeLong, in last November's election, making Lowenthal's participation in the group all the more remarkable.

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